Republican Gov. Matt Bevin is running for re-election this year. He’s got three primary challengers and low approval ratings after a series of gaffes and insults towards public school teachers. But he also has widespread name recognition and economic development successes to hang his hat on.

When he took office in late 2015, Bevin became only the third Republican governor of Kentucky since World War II. The election represented a sea change in Kentucky politics, which had been dominated by Democrats for much of state history.

Gov. Matt Bevin has crafted a new version of the pension bill he vetoed last month and is expected to call a special session for lawmakers to consider the issue soon.

The measure is similar to the one that Bevin rejected last month. It allows regional universities and agencies like health departments to exit the state’s pension system to avoid a spike in the amount of money they have to contribute to it.

A judge has struck down changes made to Kentucky’s pension systems earlier this year. The ruling states that lawmakers violated the state constitution by rushing the bill to passage in a matter of hours.

The challenge is the latest in a series of legal disputes between Democratic Attorney General Andy Beshear and Republican Gov. Matt Bevin.

This week in Kentucky politics, speculation flared that Kentucky’s new education leaders would try to take over Louisville’s public school district. Plus, a judge ruled that Attorney General Andy Beshear can sue the governor over the pension bill that was signed into law earlier this month. Capitol reporter Ryland Barton has this week’s edition of Kentucky Politics Distilled.

Lawmakers return to Frankfort this week for the 2018 General Assembly and are slated to make changes to the state’s pension systems, craft a new two-year budget and consider a variety of other legislation.

This will be the first time in Kentucky history that a budget will be written by a Republican-led legislature and governor.

On WHAS Radio’s Terry Meiners Show, Bevin said major cuts are likely across state government.

A panel of economists has revised downward its prediction of how much Kentucky will make in tax revenue by the end of the fiscal year in June and Gov. Matt Bevin is expected to make cuts to state spending soon

The Consensus Forecasting Group on Friday predicted that the state will be $156.1 million short of initial projections. State Budget Director John Chilton said he expects Gov. Matt Bevin will make cuts to state spending before the end of the calendar year to help avert a budget shortfall.

A one and a third billion dollar investment in Kentucky’s automotive industry is not changing a legislative leader’s mind about the need for broad tax reform. Toyota officials announced Monday plans to spend the funds over 5 years to revitalize design, engineering, and production at the Scott County plant.

Gov. Matt Bevin’s administration has dropped its efforts to shut down Kentucky’s last abortion clinic pending the outcome of a federal lawsuit aimed at preventing its closure.

An agreement between lawyers for the Republican governor and the Louisville clinic, EMW Women’s Surgical Center, has been submitted to U.S. District Judge Greg Stivers, who has not yet signed off on it.

As part of the agreement, Bevin’s administration agreed to renew EMW’s license until the federal suit is resolved.

In an extremely rare Saturday meeting of the Kentucky General Assembly, legislators took final action on abortion and labor-related bills. Both the House and Senate voted to prohibit abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy and require an ultrasound prior to any abortion.

During debate on the ultrasound measure, Lexington Senator Reggie Thomas said some Kentucky children face extreme trauma every day. “We see children that are unattended. We see children who will suffer. We see children who are harmed and permanently damaged.”

Kentucky’s highest court says the state’s Republican governor cannot cut the budgets of public colleges and universities without the approval of the state legislature.

The 5-2 ruling by the state Supreme Court reverses a lower court ruling that said Gov. Matt Bevin had the authority to order public colleges and universities not to spend all of the money the state legislature gave them.

Democratic Attorney General Andy Beshear appealed, arguing Bevin’s order was illegal. A majority of the court agreed on Thursday, saying Bevin does not have that authority.

The University of Kentucky’s Center for Excellence in Rural Health is one of 38 organizations to receive funding from the Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services. The $1 million grant will be used to help children in Appalachia get the health insurance they need, as well as provide to families that are eligible to coverage. Many Kentucky families are unaware they qualify for healthcare coverage so do not look into signing up for them or their children. This is especially difficult in rural parts of Eastern Kentucky, where healthcare providers have a hard time gaining access to those that need it most.

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky's Democratic attorney general has asked the Supreme Court to decide whether Gov. Matt Bevin has the authority to cut college and university budgets without the approval of the state legislature.

A state judge ruled last week that Bevin does have the authority to order public colleges and universities not to spend all of the money the state legislature gave them. Attorney General Andy Beshear is appealing the decision, arguing it gives the governor's office too much power.

Gov. Matt Bevin’s newly appointed commissioner of revenue left his last job, at Lexmark International, after the Lexington-based technology company found a host of accounting errors and declared its internal financial controls to be deficient and in need of remediation.

Bevin named Daniel Bork to the Department of Revenue job on Monday. In a news release, Bevin’s office said Bork “recently retired” as Lexmark’s vice president of tax, a job he had held since 2001. Bork’s LinkedIn profile says he worked there until September.

As his term came to an end, Gov. Steve Beshear issued 201 pardons to people convicted in Kentucky of a variety of offenses, including several sent to prison for drug crimes or for committing crimes against abusive partners.

Beshear also granted six commutations, reducing a sentence to time already served in jail.

On Tuesday, Matt Bevin will be sworn in as the 62nd governor of Kentucky. His inauguration will include an early morning worship service, cannon fire signaling the start of a two-hour parade, a public swearing-in ceremony and a “grand march” in the state capitol rotunda.

Event organizers say veterans will play a key role in the parade, and the official ceremonies will be “laid back” in a style to reflect that Gov.-elect Bevin is a “casual-type guy.”

The leader of the religious ministry constructing a massive replica of Noah’s Ark in Northern Kentucky says he won’t ask Governor-elect Matt Bevin to approve tax incentives for the project.

Instead, Answers in Genesis chief executive Ken Ham said he wants a federal court to rule on whether state tourism officials were right to decline more than $18 million in tax incentives for the project.

Governor-elect Matt Bevin on Friday announced the early priorities of his administration: dismantling the state-run health insurance exchange and removing county clerks’ names from marriage licenses.

In his first news conference since the election on Tuesday, Bevin said he hopes to have Kentucky’s health insurance exchange, Kynect, dismantled by the end of next year.

“It adds no value,” he said.

Bevin said Kynect is “redundant” because the state can instead participate in the federal health insurance exchange. But if the state switches to the federal exchange, Kentuckians will have to pay a 3.5 percent surcharge on insurance policies. Since the Affordable Care Act was implemented in 2013, Kentuckians pay a 1 percent surcharge that funds the Kynect.

The team advising Republican Gov.-elect Matt Bevin includes a Brown-Forman executive, a former Supreme Court justice and a former political rival whose allies once aired ads attacking Bevin's business record.

Bevin announced Thursday that Brown-Forman Vice President J. McCauley "Mac" Brown will lead his transition team. Bevin was elected Tuesday with more than 52 percent of the vote. He will be sworn in on Dec. 8.

One of the more unusual moments of the 2015 race for governor came in August during the Fancy Farm Picnic, famous for its unruly crowds.

Republican Matt Bevin approached the lectern where for decades Kentucky candidates faced deafening heckles and jeers — and asked the audience to join him in the Pledge of Allegiance.

The Fancy Farm speech and other moments this election cycle depict a candidate who isn’t particularly interested in the conventions of Kentucky politics, and who isn’t afraid to speak his mind.

Bevin’s entry into Kentucky politics was a shot at political convention — a primary challenge against one of the most powerful men in the state and in the nation, Sen. Mitch McConnell. Bevin lost by a lot.

Kentucky's "Constitutional Offices" are on the November 2015 ballot. On Tuesday, voters statewide will elect a new Governor and Lieutenant Governor as well as a Secretary of State, Attorney General, Auditor of Public Accounts, State Treasurer and Commissioner of Agriculture.

On this week’s show we discuss the election with journalists covering the campaigns and the election.

As Kentucky’s gubernatorial campaign enters the final three weeks before the election, the latest poll shows Democrat Jack Conway with a very slim lead over Republican Matt Bevin.

Statewide, 43% of likely voters support Conway while 41% back Bevin. Six percent favor Independent Drew Curtis and ten percent are undecided. Conway’s 2 point lead over Bevin is well within the survey’s margin of error of plus-or-minus four percentage points.

The race for Kentucky governor will be decided in just over a month. Two of the three candidates will take center stage during a debate Tuesday night.

Democrat Jack Conway and Republican Matt Bevin will participate in an hour-long debate at Centre College. Centre Assistant Professor of Politics Benjamin Knoll says debates typically do not sway allegiance. “Because the type of people who spend an hour of their night on a Tuesday night to tune in to watch are the types of people who are already interested and likely already have a preference,” said Knoll.